


Lasting Impressions

by ChaoticTalon



Category: League of Legends
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood, Blood and Gore, DJ Sona, Death, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, Future chapters just get darker in general, Hurt/Comfort, Jhin/Sona - Freeform, More characters in the future, More violence in the future, PROJECT AU, PROJECT skin line, Project Jhin, Sexual Content, Violence, sexual content in the future
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-22
Updated: 2018-10-22
Packaged: 2019-08-06 01:28:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16378793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChaoticTalon/pseuds/ChaoticTalon
Summary: Vi strummed her fingertips against her plated biceps before urging Sona to continue, “What happened when you encountered Khada Jhin, Ms. Buvelle?”At the officer’s words Sona flinched. A dark memory left best unsaid was rearing its ugly head.





	Lasting Impressions

**Author's Note:**

> My contribution to the League of Zines: Rosaria! ( https://leagueofzines.tumblr.com/ ) I had the privilege to collaborate with HatterShiara and Yangyexin ( http://yangyexin.tumblr.com/ & http://hattershiara.tumblr.com/ ) for this piece of writing. The both of them worked together and created this wonderful masterpiece that is the inspiration to what I wrote! http://yangyexin.tumblr.com/post/179322240807/annnd-heres-another-piece-done-for

_ Under the lights of bright neon and condensed moisture is a story of a city where man became machine. The once proud City of Progress fell into disease and destruction long ago and has since crumbled into that of paranoia and desperation. Sacrificing humanity for cybernetic enhancements with the promise of perfection, you could begin life anew.  _

  
  


“Ms. Buvelle?” 

Sona looked up from her glass at the Central officer sitting across from her. Her DJ helmet and the officer’s massive ATLAS gauntlets were laid out on the table in front of them, while the officer had her arms crossed against her chest; waiting as patiently as she could. Standing against the door was another woman. A neon purple wrist mounted crossbolt held tightly against her forearm, and her long photon-bleached hair laid loosely over her right shoulder. The tip of the crossbolt had been pointed at Sona at the mention of the ‘virus.’ Vayne was her name, according to Officer Vi. 

Vi strummed her fingertips against her plated biceps before urging Sona to continue, “What happened when you encountered Khada Jhin, Ms. Buvelle?”

At the officer’s words Sona flinched. A dark memory left best unsaid was rearing its ugly head. Sona noticed the vigilante in the corner have a similar reaction at the name and the two made eye contact. 

The intensity of Vayne’s glare had her quickly look away and back to the officer. Vi uncrossed her arms and propped them up on the table before leaning forward, “What did he say to you?”

Sona raised her glass and took a sip of her water as if to prepare herself to speak. The gesture itself being ironic as the DJ was mute. Settling her glass back down she let out a shaky sigh before speaking telepathically to the open comms of the interrogation room.  _ “He didn’t say anything verbally.. His expression underneath that mask was enough.. ‘You’re next.’ ”  _

  
  


In the center of a stadium stood a silhouette of a woman behind a large humming instrument. Her mask glowed soft blues and purples, as bright as the similarly colored streaks of neon hair flew and moved as if they themselves were part of the sound waves being produced by the giant speakers. The lights of the stadium were off, making the DJ the only light source. Slowly as the soft beat began to pick up, the instrument pulsed with life, and the room became brighter and brighter. The tension of the cheering audience palpable as they waited for the beat to drop. 

With a sly smile Sona waited for it to come back around to leave the audience in anticipation. When the opportune time came, the instrument in front of her changed forms. The room flashed brightly with greens and blues, her hair and mask changing along with it in the process. The audience erupted with cheers at the crescendo. 

As the final note rang out and slowly deafened, the cheering and applause of the audience overtook the stadium. With a bow and a kiss to all of her fans, Sona’s concert was over. Another huge success.

Overhead the lights begin to light up the stadium and Sona’s stage descends into the floor. As she turns and waves to her fans, an unfamiliar light in her peripherals catches her attention. In the middle of the stadium a sinister symbol on a peculiar mask flickers in and out before glitching out completely. The attendee is significantly taller than the rest of the crowd, making it fairly easy to pick out even as he is well hidden in shadow under a faulty light. Around him are the jumping and cheering fans, but he stands there rigid; refusing to applaud for the performance. The jet black mask flashes back to life to two glowing red orbs staring right at her. It unnerves her and causes her to cease thanking the fans. Thankfully it goes unnoticed by the mass by the time she is completely underneath the stage. 

Sona packs up her etwahl as she tries to shake the silhouette of the strange person in the crowd from her memory. When she is ready the stagehands escort her out of the basement of the stadium and towards the back alley where her guarded vehicle is waiting for her. With little hassle from the crazed fans waiting for her by the car, she enters and tells the driver to take her to her favorite nightclub. 

Upon arriving at the nightclub she takes her etwahl with her as she is escorted by her guards inside. The club is exclusive to VIP guests and musicians, namely DJs like herself. The club’s owner is partial to large bribes, however, which can sometimes include the rich fans that follow her or shadier people. Despite the club owner’s greedy appetite, it’s here where she can go mostly un-bothered and interact with fellow artists without fear of private shows or demands of an autograph. In the nightclub she is easily recognizable and is greeted by the regular patrons as she goes to the bar and orders her usual drink after a successful concert. Being mute, she has the perk where it isn’t required for her to make small talk with people other than a simple pleasant smile and wave. After long performances, she utilizes this trait to just let her sit in idle bliss and drink at the bar while bobbing her head to the rhythm of the music. Sometimes she tags out with the musician playing, doing a private and rare show for the patrons. Every time she does it attracts outside attention and makes the bouncers work, but they never mind it too much.

After 2 musicians swapping out and 4 drinks in, Sona feels relaxed enough from her concert to go to the dancefloor. As she steps down off her stool, drink in hand, she bumps into another person, effectively splashing them with her drink. She starts apologizing telepathically while also signing the apology and taking napkins off the counter to clean the man up. The patron tells her that it’s alright, but there is a waver in his voice, a hint of fear, as he clutches the napkins out of her hands and continues to hurry through the crowd. Sona is left there flustered and confused for a brief moment before her attention is grabbed by the bartender, a towel in his hand. She gives him a quick thank you before making it onto the dance floor in search of the man. 

The pulsating flashing lights in time with the music makes it hard for Sona to see as she weaves through the giant crowd of dancers. With all the fluorescent lights and alcohol in her body it’s hard for her to focus without the aid of her helmet, which she just realized she left at the bar counter. Squeezing past the dancers and squinting through the crowd looking for the man, her eyes manage to catch a glimpse of him, but he’s not alone. Trailing only a few feet behind him is someone with a deep crimson and jet black chest piece that offers minimum reflection against the strobing lights, and a dark emerald green jacket with a matted white collar. His helmet reflected the interchanging lights, but underneath all the glare, the hint of two glowing red eyes. 

A feeling of sickening unease crept through Sona as she stopped to watch him trail the man; a predator stalking its prey. Sona looked ahead towards the direction where the man was trying to flee and saw the stairs leading to an upper loft of the night club. 

Turning around, Sona shoved her way back to the bar. She returned the towel to the bartender before placing her helmet on and undoing the locks on her etwahl case with a simple wave of her hand. At a mere touch the instrument sprung to life, making a scratchy static noise before it dissolved into a low hum.

With the large instrument in front of her Sona starts to play a harmonic tune with the club’s pounding beat. To the other DJ and dancers it’s an expression of comradery. To Sona it’s a means to an end. By providing a beat she can then manipulate the crowd to move out of her way as she weaves through effortlessly. Making her way to the second floor loft she scans over the patrons, desperately looking for the two men. When no sign of either of them are visible, she plays more apprehensively and makes her way towards the vip lounge. 

  
  


Looming over the cowering injured man, Khada Jhin drew a sleek black and grey gun from the holster on his hip before kneeling down and placing the barrel against the man’s temple. Immediately the man began to beg for his life, but such pleads fell on deaf ears, “Hush my dear. You forfeited your life when you gambled away my payments.”

A wave of static infiltrated Jhin’s head, temporarily interrupting him from pulling the trigger. The static grew louder and caused him to lean away from the man. The frequency was akin to someone trying to hack into his communication unit -no- something far greater. Never had he felt such an intense direct contact. Someone was trying to tap directly into his mind. 

Standing up from his debter he grasped his head as it ached with the interference. Pointing the gun down at the man his hand uncharacteristically shook and he was unable to bring himself to pull the trigger. The static was deafening to the point where he couldn’t hear himself think.  _ Where is it coming from? Closer. It’s getting closer. _

Amidst the maddening scratchy crackling an intelligible female voice broke in and out. Each attempt at communicating with him was a jabbing pierce through his mind. Glaring down at the quivering gun in his hand he attempted to pull the trigger once more only to hear another piercing screech. Through all the noise going on in his head his sensors managed to pick up movement approaching him from behind the guarded balcony doors. The bouncers were paid off by him and he had done thorough background checks on both to ensure they were no possible threat to him. Neither were capable of having such sabotaging weaponry. 

Allowing one of his mental barriers to come down he focused on the female voice and managed to make out a sentence, “Drop your gun and let him go!” 

Lowering Whisper away from the man’s face, Jhin turned to the door and waited for his assailant to reveal herself. His body shook as he clutched his face with his right hand. “Expose yourself!” he snarled at the double doors.

Sona pushed through the doors with a single soundwave from her etwahl. Jhin scoffed in disbelief at who stood before him.  _ The mediocre DJ from the concert. _ While her stance was firm, her display was overall lacking. Her helmet hid her expression, as neon oranges and reds spiked across the mask’s screen. She was too tense and anxious; making it extremely clear by how rapid the beat of her music played. 

Jhin was ultimately unimpressed. Sliding his hand down his face to his chest, he pulls the jet black carbon fiber mesh away to expose out a thin ribbon of circuitry. Snaking the end of the circuit up through the mesh to the inside of his mask he reconnects the port and immediately the mask sparks to life by flashing the red PROJECT symbol. The awoken parasitic drone helped cancel out Sona’s telepathic static to that of a mere hum at the gates of his mind. Jhin sighs in relief at the deafened intrusion, his body relaxing enough to steady the grip on his gun. Mentally he’s in a state of disrepair.  _ An upgrade can fix that.  _ Staring at the woman before him he scans her for possible augmentations.

When nothing pops up on his scanners he frowns in further disappointment. An organic lifeform holds no interests for him. However the instrument with its ultrasonic frequencies that were capable to knock out various servos and his mental functionality so seamlessly, does hold a certain charm.  _ A target to hunt down for another time. _

Turning his attention back to his original game, he hummed in amusement at how little progress the man had made in retreating. Jhin was immobilized long enough to give anyone a fighting chance at fleeing, but the fool hadn’t ceased the opportunity. Raising Whisper up he aimed and fired the final shot-  
_“Stop!”_ A thundering shockwave erupted from the etwahl in a cone in front of Sona. 

The metallic clang of the gun hitting the balcony was the first to ring out. Followed was the clash of Jhin’s knees and then his back. His mask had short circuited, sparks flying out as the hum of the parasitic drone faded. As he laid there he watched Sona run past him and help his target to stand up. The acceptance of missing the final shot was hard to swallow as he watched her struggle to walk with the man. Despite his current fixed location, they maneuvered around him carefully. 

It was a fleeting moment but Jhin could’ve sworn he saw her face underneath the mask. Her expression was nothing less of fearful, perhaps even loathing, but her eyes passed the cruelest of judgements: empathy. For in the moment the crescendo hit him, Jhin’s mental barriers had fallen and Sona had witnessed every twisted thing in his mind. Every secret. Every detail. She saw when the virus came to be and how it spread so rapidly. With such forbidden knowledge, Sona was still unable to sympathize with this machine… this man. As quick as the connection had come, it vanished. Leaving Jhin broken there to delve into the secrets Sona had imprinted upon his psyche as his systems restarted.


End file.
